When Tyler Washburn from B&K Lawn and Landscape set out at the beginning of the year to have his crew complete 1,000 courses through Greenius, he did not know the ripple effect that was about to take place. With 1,200 courses now completed (and counting), he has empowered crews, increased profits (hello, $10 million in revenue last year, and a goal of $12 million this year), and an employee retention rate to brag about.
B&K Lawn and Landscape is a family-owned full landscape and lawn care service company in Idaho Falls, Idaho. They’ve been around since 1996 and through the power of excellent work and referrals, they have grown into a full-service provider of residential and commercial landscaping, lawn maintenance, sprinkler and irrigation installation, pest control, and snow removal services.
Tyler Washburn started from the ground up (literally, installing sprinkler heads) and has grown into a landscape powerhouse that helps businesses become more operationally efficient. Since joining B&K two years ago, his focus has been on streamlining operations, empowering his crews with the knowledge they need to succeed, ensuring safety, and ultimately contributing to the continued growth and profitability of B&K Lawn & Landscape.
But when he first joined B&K, like many growing landscaping businesses, he wanted to move away from relying on on-the-job training that lacks standardization and documentation, especially with a growing and diverse workforce. While B&K Lawn & Landscape were already using LMN, Washburn brought in Greenius, the platform to manage your crew’s learning, for employee training.
B&K Uses Continuous Learning for Employee Growth and Empowerment
Washburn implemented a multi-level learning path system tailored to different roles within the company. He set up four distinct learning paths in Greenius for his team, with about 70 employees making their way through these levels. The first level covers the basics of PPE and safety. The second level upped the safety training a bit more with things like CPR and equipment usage. From there, level 3 covered supervisor training.
This is the point where most people would stop. But Tyler was intentional about setting up a culture of engagement, empowerment, and continuous learning for his crew. So level 4 was what he deems his deeper thinking and critical thinking level.
His goal for 2025 was for his team to complete 1,000 courses, and they are already past 1,200 courses completed!
As his team members progress through each level, Washburn is able to identify the employees who are driven to succeed. He can see who is getting to that fourth level, raising their hand for career growth with B&K Lawn and Landscaping.
Using Greenius for Onboarding and Weekly Tailgate Talks
When a new employee joins the B&K team, they are met with a smooth onboarding experience through their Greenius training. “With new people, you’re setting them up the first day. They’re able to feel productive, like they were able to accomplish something. But it’s not just ‘throw them a shirt, throw them in a truck and go.’ It builds into that company culture of ‘we value safety, we value your learning, we value you as a person, and we want you to be safe and to learn,’” says Washburn.
The culture of education at B&K doesn’t stop at training though. They use the Tailgate Talks feature with Greenius to stay compliant and to remain consistent with education. “Tailgate talks are nice because it gives us a layout of what we want to talk about and we can look at it the day before, and you’re not just winging it Monday morning,” says Washburn.
They take five minutes to go through the tailgate talk and are out in the yard by 8:15 am, with everyone on the same page.
And this goes beyond just simple safety compliance. Washburn knows how high the stakes can be in the landscaping industry. “We’re going over this because we want everybody 20 years from now to be able to hear your grandkids. We want you to hear your kids. We want you to know what’s going on, and we don’t want to jeopardize that,” he says.
Top Outcomes for B&K Lawn and Landscape
- Improved Crew Empowerment: Providing crews with necessary information upfront leads to greater job ownership and less downtime
- Enhanced Safety Culture: Consistent and documented safety training through Greenius
- Efficient Onboarding: Streamlined training for new hires, including bilingual support for H-2B employees
- Employee Development: Identifying and nurturing talent through insights gained from Greenius training progress
- Bragging Rights: 1,200 Greenius courses completed, and counting!
